Jonathon Dunne: Why are nice people 'downright nasty on social media?

Jonathon Dunne, Irishman and host of “Freedom’s Disciple,” has had a “twenty year love affair” with America. But during a recent hiatus from the US, his only “views” of our country were through media and social media where he watched violent rioting and political upheaval from afar. He began to garner a terrible fear: what if the loving people he remembered had changed into the bitter and angry people he saw online?

“What happens if I get to the nation I love, and you’re not the same, that your people are not the same, that your people act differently?” wonders Dunne in this week's podcast. “Because I have two biased sources: I have one which is the media, which I don’t really read, and I don’t really trust, and I don’t really watch because, they’re the media. There’s no explanation needed there. But also on social media where everyone is constantly either angry or trying to one up each other or trying to prove a point or trying to win an argument. What happens if that has translated to your people on the ground?”

Happily, Jonathon reported that he found the American people to be "warm and loving" upon his return, but he also warned, "While you haven't changed yet, emotions and anger are not like a switch ... you can't just flip it on and off. If you don't start looking at how you act on social media, it is going to change. It will change how you act in every day life. It's inevitable. I hope that day never comes because truly as a nation you are wonderful because of your people. Your people are amazing."

Listen to the podcast above to hear the full story.

Listen to more episodes of “Freedom’s Disciple” with Jonathon Dunne on-demand and every Saturday at noon ET at TheBlaze Contributors.